A Nightmare Rides My Bus!
by The Talking Absol
Summary: AU A boy discovers that the horror icons, or "Nightmares", are living in his neighborhood! Against their liking, he must help them from the very humans they once hurt...-ON HIATUS-
1. Prelude

_A Nightmare Rides My Bus!_

_By: The Talking Absol_

_Prelude: The History of the Nightmares_

_A very long time ago, there was a tremendous war in the Cartoon Worlds that, while it only killed a handful of Cartoons, ended up in having a planet thrown out of the solar system. A planet that had been close in its proximity and population style began showing signs of going down the same road, but in a slightly different way- little kids were drinking, people were fighting each other, and basically behaving in a way that the One Above Fate did not like or appreciate. Instead of letting the One's wrath take the planet, Fate's Creature offered a different approach- vigilantes, only with a good head upon their shoulders._

_This "Nightmare system" went like this: An innocent soul was taken in, most of them dead because of being falsely accused of a crime, and asked to become a Nightmare. If they said yes (which they did a lot of the time), then they trained vigorously for one year before being given their first Haunt. In that year of training, they improved their fighting skills, and worked upon their own special abilities, such as telekinesis or predicting fears and using them against their Haunts. Every Nightmare had an individual power that they could use and perfect, but there were also some common elements, such as teleportation, heightened senses, Nightmare Mode, and True Form._

_FC found a soul that was innocent and gave it life again, training him and teaching him the things he would need. FC made this soul into something more than what it had been…something most people could only dream up in their worst nightmares. This Nightmare became known as the Boogeyman, a being that scared people into doing good and right. However begrudgingly he admitted it, he was a black knight for Good. _

_The Boogeyman was given commissions, or people that Fate knew had done wrong or were going to become even worse as time went on. Unquestioningly, the Boogeyman went out and used people's worst fears against them, teaching them lessons about good and bad. This trick worked for many years, and slowly the population began to get under control._

_As the years passed, and FC employed more souls, including the infamous Bloody Mary, the White Lady, and even the Headless Horseman. During that time, they fought to gain control on the ever-lasting rise of true evil in their world. Finally, sometime in the 1800's, things began to calm down. And then, tragedy struck._

_A person, only known to the outside world as Jack the Ripper, was killing innocent women in the streets of London. Upset by this, FC was stuck on what to do with him until he stumbled across a thought that would revolutionize the Nightmare system forever. _

_He sent his Nightmares to kill Jack the Ripper._

_Since they were innocent before they died, none of the Nightmares had the heart (though they were enraged by this man's actions) to actually kill him. They feared for their own untainted souls, though FC reassured them that they would be fine, as Jack's death had been decreed by Fate. Finally, they worked up the courage together and killed Jack with his own tricks._

_So was the First Kill. As the actions of the people the Nightmares didn't haunt grew worse, Fate found it necessary to deploy more Nightmares to kill people. None of them enjoyed it, but they knew it was for the better. _

_And that's when another light shone through. One day, the Boogeyman returned to the Nightmare Society, the home and training area of all Nightmares, beaten and bruised, claiming one of the girls he'd tried to kill had been innocent and turned upon him, and beaten him. When FC went to see who she was, he was surprised to find that she had changed herself for the better because of the scare. And thus began the idea of the Last Girl Standings, or Survivor Girls. Though their meaning and purpose has changed since that point, they were still necessary in order to spread rumors of the Nightmares and keep people at a respectable level of Good._

_However, not all Survivor girls learned, and they grew hurt and vengeful upon the Nightmares that had killed their friends or relatives. Many times, the Nightmares would encounter Survivor Girls more than once and face them again, only to lose because they were still innocent. Sometimes, the Survivor Girls only added insult to injury because they were the Nightmare's relatives._

_Many years passed, ones which included the employment of more Nightmares, their population swelling to fifty, while the crime and bad rate stood at a standstill that the Nightmares could handle. Every year the Nightmares got a group (most commonly teens) to hunt and kill in their own fashion, and Survivor girls swelled, though a good chunk of them went insane. And then, another tragedy hit the Nightmare World._

_The planet that had been banned long ago came back via several "students", and began to invade the Cartoon Worlds. After only ¾ of a year, they finally hit the Nightmare World, leaving behind a trial of dead worlds and Cartoons. They invaded slowly, crawling up from the roots of humanity itself. The Nightmares, desperate to protect their home, fought and killed in near free-range, FC leading them on in their makeshift army. Finally, FC took to his True Form and, with a flap of his mighty wings, blew the invaders back to their home planet. _

_However, a bad seed brought partially upon by the war took root in the Nightmare's home, growing in its own anger and vengeful thoughts. While the Nightmares relaxed and went back to their usual business, the thoughts took the form of a plan; a plan that would bring down the very pedestal they stood upon._

_Gathering the vengeful Survivor Girls, the people the Nightmare's had haunted but hadn't learned, and relatives of the people the Nightmares had killed, he started an underground agency to fight the Nightmares, "seeing through" their guise of righteousness. Thus began the Nightmare Hunters._

_Knowing that they were very powerful and had the potential to do devastating amounts of damage, FC called his Nightmares together and then separated them into groups, playing upon each other's weaknesses and strengths to make strategic teams to combat the Nightmare Hunters. They were then separated into various spots across the world to try and hide from the nightmare Hunters until FC "could take care of the problem." The Nightmares, as typical of their style and attitude today, did not like the idea but knew it was probably for the best. And so, saying their goodbyes to each other, they teleported off and made themselves comfortable in their new homes. _

_FC sent a certain group to a specific area without them knowing, foreseeing that something would take place and be the first in a series of events that would change the Cartoon Worlds forever. One person would arise and help the Nightmares remember their true purpose, and would help them save the Cartoon Worlds from a threat that made the Nightmare Hunters look like little toys. An enemy from the very depths of Evil itself was arising, stirring in his own darkness. He didn't want revenge; only power. And the only figures standing in his way…were the Nightmares._

_Enter, and behold the story of the Nightmares._

_Pay attention unto this-_

_a riddle for your tender ears._

_Where does good and evil come from?_

_Is it acquired over many years?_

_Can a child have a black heart?_

_Can you tell when you see its face?_

_Is a newborn always pure,_

_or can it begin from a darker place?_

_Little Demons…_

Remember, their world was our planet's sister. Not exactly the same, but similar.

It would help if you went over to my dA account (same username) and read the Theory of Logic and Magic, but for those of you unable-

The "banished" planet was us; our planet, Earth 1. Logic is what happens when you question Magic; try to explain it, which kills Magic. Which is why Magic doesn't exist on our planet. Ummm. And then, after a long, long time, Logic came back to their worlds and tried to take them over, but failed (not completely, but that's for later) because the Nightmares and FC were able to stop it.

Well, jeez, it was certainly DUE for a remake. .

The Nightmare theory/Logic and Magic theory belong to me! The Boogeyman and all of the characters I'm borrowing do not. Other than Fate's Creature and the guy I mentioned at the end.

If you have questions, feel free to ask! I don't bite.


	2. The New Kids in School

A Nightmare Rides My Bus!

By: The Talking Absol

Chapter One: The New Kids in School

"Hey pizzaface! Don't turn around!"

Almost immediately, the boy to whom the statement was directed flew up from his position and ran like hell. He pushed his large round glasses up the bridge of his nose, and shuffled his loose bookbag strap up his shoulder a bit more. Panting heavily after only a few feet, he huffed and bolted for the large double doors to his school. As he trotted his feet up the steps, however, his shoelaces, which he had been trying to tie when the assault came, got wound up and caught on each other, and then under his shoes.

Walter McCarvic, as that was his name, immediately fell face-first into the steps, nearly breaking his nose and causing his glasses to fly off to an undetermined direction.

'_Aw crap, not again…_' his thoughts grumbled, and he was attempting to pick himself up when somebody else picked him up by the seat of his pants.

Walter may have been short for his age group, but the guy holding him made him look like a mouse. His bulging muscles flexed under his sweaty white shirt as they picked Walter up and turned him to face the three figures behind him.

The first one, David, laughed insanely. There were rumors he was always smuggling Ritalin into the school. He was the brains of the group, if you could call what he had in his skull "brains".

Walter whimpered, "What do you want?"

"You're late on your payment. Now, hand over your rent for your protection." Alan, the red-headed one next to David, said with a grin.

Walter grimaced. "Look, I don't have any today, okay? My moth-" He was interrupted when Billy suddenly began to shake him violently. Walter let out a series of unintellectual noises as he was violently thrust back and forth.

"B-But…" he stammered, and David stopped Billy when he grabbed Walter's shirt collar.

"Ya know, my old man said that there were only two thing to be certain of in life- death, and, uh…" he paused, his thought process going at its full speed. After an awkward silence, he grinned and finished, "Taxes! This is kinda like taxes. Welcome to life, shitface."

With that began a series of pummeling. Walter was too weak to defend himself, so he was thankful when a whistle blew and the boys fled like rats leaving a sinking ship. But Billy still kicked him one more time for good measure, leaving Walter curled up in a ball, wincing with pain, hands curled into his spiky orange hair.

"Hey!" Mr. Ader, the gym teacher, cried. He glared down at Walter, and then bent over and commanded, "Get up."

Walter winced and clutched his nose as he stood up on shaky, klutzy legs.

"Good. Now get to class."

Walter struggled to find his feet as the bell rang, signaling it was time to go to class. He sighed heavily, and brushed himself off, being sure to pick his glasses up. Grabbing his book bag, he headed into the school, still limping until his leg seemed to pop back into place.

Just another day at Mickley J. Kensworth K-8 school.

The class screamed and yelled, doing thing that were typical of a middle school classroom. The lights buzzed briefly as Walter walked in, but he knew it from their teacher's entrance. A shadow darkened the chalkboard behind the desk, and Mrs. Crooknuse appeared, looking like she'd been there the entire time.

Mrs. Crooknuse cleared her throat and the class became quiet. "Children." She said in her usual creepy monotone. "Today we have a flood of new…students. But unfortunately for you, we only get one of these…students." She motioned with her hand to a girl that also seemed to suddenly appear next to her.

The class was silent until Ms. Crooknuse coughed into her hand. "Well, aren't you going to introduce yourself?" she asked.

The girl jumped slightly, and then answered uniformly, "Sadaku. Sadaku…um… Morgan."

'Sadaku Morgan? What kind of a name is that? And why does it sound familiar…?' Walter wondered thoughtfully.

"What? Do your mixed parents have some kind of twisted -" David said, laughing, but Sadaku turned her head slightly, and there was an evil flash in her eye. David started choking, clutching his throat, as Sadaku straightened herself and took her seat, a smirk on her face.

She placed herself two seats up and a row to Walter's right. She put her books in her desk and flipped her long black hair as if it were a habit, and then sat forward, hands intertwined by the fingers.

Ms. Crooknuse coughed again, and then continued her lesson as David coughed up a black hairball.

…**::Lunch::…**

As if not satisfied with their "fight" earlier, the three boys were, once again, throwing Walter around. It was easy for them because Walter never bothered to defend himself. He figured he was like an opossum- if he simply played "dead," they would give up and go away. Luckily, it seemed to work most of the time.

David, Alan, and Billy were typical school bullies, but at the same time, they weren't. They'd been picking on Walter most of their school lives together, from kindergarten playgrounds up until this year of middle school. Walter didn't really know why they liked picking on him so much, but he'd grown used to it. With his scrawny build and weak personality, he made an easy target.

Oh, granted, he'd tried to defend himself before, but he found out the hard way that that was completely pointless and only attracted other students to laugh at him. More especially if he tried to get the teachers to help him.

Today, however, was different.

Billy already had Walter pinned up against the pillar supporting the ceiling to the lunch room, still holding him down for money, or simply humiliation.

"S-sorry! I said I didn't have any-" Walter cried.

The four boys suddenly became aware of a daunting presence beside them. Slowly, they turned their heads, expecting the worst…

…Until the four boys realized it came from Sadaku, standing a massive four-foot five. Walter's respect for her didn't diminish, but rather his worry for her health grew.

David started to say something sarcastic, but his eyes bulged as he coughed up one long, black hair which he pulled slowly from his mouth. He glanced at her, made the "oh _shit_" face, and turned and ran out of the lunch room. Alan and Billy stared after him, and after a moment's hesitation, dropped everything and ran after their leader.

"Whew…" Walter breathed a sigh of relief, and turned to look up at Sadaku, who blew a strand of hair out of her face calmly and turned to walk back to her table amidst the sullen, sudden silence of the lunchroom. Everyone stared after her. _No one_ had _ever_ been able to scare David like that, save for his father.

"W-wait!" Walter half-yelped, gathering his things and jumping up after her. As was typical his first try at getting up from anything, he stumbled and fell again, but quickly recovered and leapt after her, catching up in a few strides just as she sat down with her new friends (or were they sisters? One had black hair and pale, greenish skin like her, and the other was much younger and she had brown hair).

She glared at him, still as silent as the grave. Walter felt an unintentional chill make its way down his spine, but he swallowed his brief fear.

"Thank you for saving me that was very nice of you okay bye." He said in one, short breath, and then turned on his heel to leave. In a split second, though, a cold, small hand had grabbed his shirt and pulled him around and shoved him down onto the seat next to Sadaku.

"Sit." She said in a hollow, gurgled voice. Walter briefly wondered if she had a small, electronic voice box in her, because it sounded like she was speaking through static.

"Um…ah…hi?" Walter said nervously, not used to being surrounded by girls.

There was a long, awkward silence before the little girl across from Sadaku took the position of introductions and the like.

"Hi. My name's Natalie." She said, and blinked up at him expectantly.

"Hi, um, I'm Walter." Walter said, feeling really, really strange, like they actually didn't want him there, but had made him sit just for the purpose of sitting.

"That's my sister, Sadaku." She said, pointing to Sadaku, "and this is my other sister, Yuki."

Yuki opened her mouth, and Walter could have sworn he heard a strange croaking noise, like that weird noise from the Grudge or something. But as soon as he heard it, it stopped and Yuki just shut her mouth very quickly and simply nodded at Walter. Walter blinked wearily.

"What…?" he started to ask.

"Uh…Yuki's a mute! She can't talk and stuff." Natalie said hurriedly.

Walter stared at them. He sighed, and then smiled and shrugged. "Nice to meet you." He said.

"Do you have sisters?" Natalie asked, cocking her head to the side like a normal little child would.

"Yeah, actually. Rachel and Misdreve, but she likes to be called Missy."

Natalie perked, eyes bright. "I met her today! In class! She's nice."

All throughout lunch, Walter noticed that the girls didn't eat or drink. Natalie excused this by saying they had already eaten, and Sadaku and Yuki just nodded to this. Walter found that strange…since lunch had only begun five minutes before he walked in. But, he didn't mind. He finally had someone to sit with, and for that, he was happy.

They had to part ways after lunch, and Walter had no other classes with the girls other than having a locker close to Sadaku. Natalie was in first grade, though, so it was only fitting that he no longer saw her.

Walter had expected to see the girls ride home on the buses, and he was right, for once. What surprised him, however, was when the three of them joined the bus with his two sisters for home.

Rachel, who was a year younger than Walter, filed her nails and pretended to ignore her brother and little sister sitting across from her, instead choosing to chatter with her best friend, Emily. She was actually very nice, but when around her friends she preferred to be "Miss Popular" rather than "Miss Family Girl."

Missy waved as Natalie and her sisters passed them and sat down several rows behind them, and Walter dared a glance just to check where they were. For some reason, he felt safer knowing where they were in relation to his sisters, whom he would at least try to guard with his life.

Not that he suspected them of anything, but it was better safe than sorry.

They even got off at the same stop, although the girls headed towards a house down the street while Walter, Rachel, and Missy's house was simply across from the bus stop in their quiet, suburban neighborhood. Before entering his house, though, Walter glanced once more as he saw the three enter a house not too far from his, although theirs was the supposedly "haunted" one that no one had bought for years. As he went inside, he speculated this.

Why hadn't he seen them on the bus that morning?

And more importantly, why hadn't he seen anyone move in there in the first place?

END CHAPTER ONE

OMG SO MANY CHANGES YOU HAVE NO IDEA.

The Creation theory no longer exists.

Walter is annoying and even more klutzy. And yes, this will hindrance him immensely.

Sadaku is now more like her actual self; quiet and venomous.

Charles is now a lone PI.

The Nightmare Hunters are a lot more involved.

There will only be one sequel.

Adrian, aka the Golden-Eyed man, will finally have a major role.

FC is a lot less involved.

My friends and I will make cameos, but other than that we will no longer be involved.

Rachel and Missy are less involved, and are now Walter's sisters.

Rose is just a crazy kid in school.

And most importantly…

_There will be multiple betrayals._

Most of which I don't think any of you will actually see coming. I'm very excited for the new plotline. Soooo many twists.

Sadaku Morgan, Natalie, and Yuki do not belong to me. You'll see who they are eventually. If you already haven't figured out who they are from my stupid obvious hints. Walter, Mrs. Crooknuse, and Mr. Ader belong to me. David and is thugs are…just there. They're based off of people in real life, but those boys weren't so mean. XD

That is all. I must leave now.


	3. Life at Home

A Nightmare Rides My Bus!

By: The Talking Absol

Chapter Two: Life at Home

"So kids, how was school today?" Mrs. McCarvic asked, trying to start a conversation when they walked in the door.

"Stupid." Rachel answered, still texting on her phone as she passed both of her parents and was up in her room in only seconds.

"Cool." Missy said, and then went into massive detail about her day, starting from the moment she had walked onto the bus until she had walked in the door.

When she mentioned Natalie, Walter started to explain that he had seen her sisters, but Missy kept talking, so as a polite gesture he was quiet until she finished, getting her and himself a snack to eat while doing homework. Their parents nodded along, looking ecstatic when she mentioned the new kid.

When Walter explained about seeing her sisters, Missy made a face.

"I still can't believe they put us in separate lunches." she mumbled, then quieter, "I wanna meet her sisters."

"Heh, well, they're both really, um, quiet." Walter commented.

"It's probably just because they're new to the school, or possibly new to the country from the way you described Sadaku, Walter." his father pointed out.

"Awesome!" he grinned, "Never thought of it that way…I just became friends with foreign kids!" He punched the air in celebration.

By the time they finished their homework, their mother had prepared dinner, and Rachel, smelling food, came down from her room and decided to spend time with her family. The running joke was that she was already a teenager- she was antisocial to her family when it came down to her friends, but required the family unit when she needed them, such as for food and comfort.

Ah yes, such was the life of Rachel.

She brushed her brown hair out of her eyes as she scarfed down the tuna, occasionally talking to point out interesting things in her day over dinner. When she brought up how her hair had simply refused to do anything right, Walter, once again, pointed out the fact she at least didn't have _his_ hair. Nobody knew where or why he had gotten it- the rest of his family had brown hair, even his father. Nor freckles, which dotted their way across Walter's nose and some of his upper cheekbones. But, it must have been a recessive trait, most likely from his grandfather on his mother's side, who had also had orange-ish hair and freckles. But that bright of a shade? No one knew.

About the only thing he had in common with his family were his green eyes, which Rachel and their father had. Missy and their mother had those nice blue eyes.

Rachel smirked sarcastically. "Sure. Well, you're right. At least I don't stand out in a crowd like my head's on fire." She made a scrunched-up face, continuing, "But I still hate my hair. It just _refuses_ to cooperate with me!"

"It'll pass, sweetie." Their mother stated, nodding sagely.

"I wish it would go along a lot faster." Rachel pouted.

…**::Elsewhere in the city::…**

A man waited in the shadows, calmly watching the world pass him by. Rain fell rapidly in sheets as cold as ice, but it didn't bother him. His casual brown hat didn't hide the glint of his sunglasses from the passing car headlights.

He looked up slightly at the payphone in front of him, finally making the decision to go up and dial a number.

There were several rings before the line clicked, and a dark voice asked, "Well, Charles?"

Charles, as that was the man's name, grumbled back, "Nothing, sir. I've been doing everything in my power, and they're still evading me."

"Well then try harder. I trust you; you're still one of the best at this."

"Thank you sir, thank you. But…" Charles inhaled slightly, feeling nervousness wreck his system, "…I think I will be a lot more danger if I continue this alone. I have a bad feeling about this next lead; I just…I think they're leading me into some kind of trap. Especially that one woman- uh- Miss Thompson. She's dangerous, and she knows I'm investigating them."

He shouldn't have been scared. He'd handled tougher cases while on this job, and still came home to see his wife and child every night. But something about this "company" gave him the willies…

"You've trained for this day, Charles." The dark voice softened sympathetically. "But, if you do need backup, just say the word."

His boss was right.

"No, I just…just letting you know. I'll call you again after this lead." He quickly hung up, feeling as if something or someone was watching him. He glanced around, but nobody was there except the person who was waiting to use the line. She smiled politely at him, nodding as he tipped his hat and moved on.

He fingered something in the inner pocket of his soaking jacket. Still there. Good then, he still had something against those Nightmare Hunters, as they called themselves.

The FBI had sent him to casually investigate their company, but what he had uncovered so far was twisted beyond his belief. It was full of crazy people that had, at some point or another in most of their lives, been locked away in asylums, and they were being given guns and ammo and told that whatever they thought had put them in the asylum, to go out and strike back. But that was all he knew so far; he still had a lot of work to do.

As Charles sauntered off into the night, the woman watched him, her green eyes glinting with deep-rooted anger, possibly a family trait. She ran a hand through her pixie-short, brown hair, and dialed another number.

It rang only once before a voice, more gravely but just as dark as the previous one across the line, picked up.

"Yes, Kate?"

"He's getting too close, Nightmare."

END CHAPTER TWO

Not all of the chapters will be this short, I can guarantee that. This is just mainly a sort-of background thing, along with setting up the characters.

And yes, Walter is weird. Glasses, freckles, bright orange hair…how much more COULD you stand out?

Everyone except for the woman on the phone belongs to me. If you know who she is, I'll give you a cookie! ^^

And yes, Charles is married. His child goes to Walter's school. She has his eyes and her mother's hair. Another cookie if you know who she is!


	4. Ghostly Visions

A Nightmare Rides My Bus!

By: The Talking Absol

Chapter Three: Ghostly Visions

It was a cold night, with fog gathering at the edges of a dark wood. It quickly inhabited the forest; its wet, shivering fingers creeping along in a slow, intimidating way. The trees swayed lightly in an indeterminable wind, and their leaves rustled as if talking of the dark force that sometimes came out from its home and heart deep in the woods. But their mumblings were not heard by the man running from the dark force.

He bolted through the forest, slipping on the wet and moldy leaves and stumbling over the fallen trunks and stumps of chopped down trees. He had no idea what he'd done to anger the spirit that still slept within the woods- of course, he had even made sure that his victim was at least asleep peacefully before abducting her, taking her into the woods and killing her!

He gasped for breath, his open shirt flapping wildly in the wind. It did nothing to cover the horrific sound of those pounding hoof beats behind him, however…the horse with horrid glowing red eyes…

And the rider with no head!

…**::Back at the McCarvic Household, San Diego::…**

Walter stared blankly at his math homework. Ho matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to get the problem right in his head. Whether it was the time or the environment, he wasn't sure, but it was making him suddenly stupid. He blinked, and then retracted back from his book and took a weary glance around his room.

His bed took up at east a quarter of it, with a closet for games and books on the wall opposite Walter. Across from the bed were his clothes drawers, and where he sat, right next to his window, was his desk. The dark sky outside didn't help his eyesight, but it was nice to look at the bright half-moon in the sky.

He turned back to his math book, and then suddenly jumped in surprise. There it was! Now he knew the answer. Scribbling down something in his jagged handwriting, he sat back and smiled at his accomplishment. His eyes drooped and his head nodded and finally drooped onto his chest.

Someone opened his door, and Walter nearly jumped out of his chair. "Y-yes?" he cried.

"Shhh! Are you done with homework?" His mother whispered.

"Oh. Yep." Walter said with a smile.

"Alright then. Get some sleep. Goodnight." She said with a smile, and closed his door.

Walter sighed, and then decided that sleep sounded good. However, one last glance at the moon might help…Just as he was about to pull apart his curtains, he saw a green flash far off to the right. He threw the drapes open and quickly shot his vision in that direction.

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. He grumbled something under his breath about "crazy neighbors" and took a longing look at the moon. It's aura around it shone brightly against the dark blue background. He'd had some kind of strange liking to it as far back as he could remember- he especially loved full moons, because they seemed almost magical.

Suddenly, another blue-green spectral flash scattered itself across his glasses and vision from the right. He glanced back over there quickly. It was coming from the house at the end of the street! The one Sadaku and her family lived in! The supposedly "haunted" one that kicked people out, running and screaming, if some idiot tried to vandalize or enter it. It was a creepy, decrepit place, even though it had once looked like every other house on the black- two-story, pretty white, and a beautiful green lawn and white picket fence. But ever since the last people in there had moved out, it had not exactly fallen apart (but still looked kinda creepy) and not even the construction workers who fixed the houses up were "allowed" on its lawn.

Walter's eyes widened at the sight. Every window and even the door frame were alight in the strange glow. Just as quickly as it had come, however, it faded and there were no more.

Walter's breath came in heaving breaths. The feeling from the glow…It wasn't normal! He had to tell someone about this, he had to go and get the authorities, he had to-

And then, he felt a blow to the head and everything went black.

…**::Outside::…**

Several dark figures rushed along, as if they thought they were going to be late for something. Once they came up to Walter's house, the air almost shifted, like there was a hole being ripped in it. Another, taller figure stepped out from the rift and the three figures stopped and one cursed.

"Shit, F-" the first one's was a female, but it had an extreme gruffness to it like they had bronchitis or something.

"Oh come on! You aren't that surprised to see me again, are you?" the figure said, obviously male's and very deep.

"Well, don't you have your own commission tonight?" the second figure asked; another girl's, but this one was lighter and quiet.

"Yep. But you guys didn't see the kid in the window- he saw you, you know…"

"Bullshit! I checked every house-" the gruff female voice hissed.

"Well, bullshit back, 'cause I had to knock him out- right up there…" his right hand pointed up towards Walter's window, and something glinted like a knife in his hand.

"Fu-" the first female growled, but the second interrupted her.

"We don't have time for this!" the second hissed; another female, but her voice was garbled and sounded like it was coming across a dying intercom, fading in and out and staticy.

"Well, if you ladies don't mind, I've got to go…" the man said, and his toothy grin was the last thing to fade before another hole ripped open the air and he disappeared.

"Ffff-Alright, let's go- and be careful, for…FC's sake…" the first voice snarled, and then the three disappeared.

…**::The Next Morning::…**

Walter awoke, not really knowing what was going on. One moment he was looking at something through the window, the next…

He opened one groggy eye and noticed sunlight streaming through his window and into his room. Everything was blurry, but he could tell he was in his own bed, in his own house. He grumbled something under his breath and reached across his bed for his glasses. Finding them, he sat up slightly and put them on, blinking his eyes several times. He nearly jumped out of his bed when his eyes adjusted.

There were glowing purple footprints on his floor! He screeched and shot under the covers, shivering and mumbling incoherent sentences to himself. Several seconds later, however, he poked his head out from under the covers and dared another glance.

Nothing was there. He sat up straighter and crawled out of bed, noting that he had apparently been tucked in with his clothes from yesterday still on. He shot over to the area he had seen them and felt the carpet with his hands, spreading his fingers to try and cover every area. Nada.

He sat back on his knees, hands drooped to his sides. Then, he shook his head and got up to get ready for the day. That's when the screaming began.

It was Rachel!

Walter pounded out of his room and down the hallway above his parents' room. They too had bolted from their positions at the kitchen table and threw themselves up the stairs. The scream of terror continued frantically, and Walter tried to avoid his parents coming up, but instead tripped over his own feet and was sent tumbling down the stairs. His mother stopped and screeched in horror.

"Walter! Are you alright? Oh sweetie, you should watch where you're going!" she cried, walking halfway back down the stairs to make sure Walter got up as his father continued on into Rachel's room. He groaned, clutching his head, and steadily got up. He was SO glad it was the weekend- he couldn't have survived through the day with this new headache. Shaking his head, he turned and smiled up at his mother.

"Yeah, I'm okay." He answered.

She sighed, and then ran back up with him into Rachel's room.

As it turned out, it had only been a spider. Walter had screamed and fallen down the stairs again, and promptly hid under the kitchen counter. Rachel quickly followed when her father cornered it, but Missy just laughed until Rachel yelled at her.

Walter and his siblings managed to get through at least one game of Uno before breaking out into another fight, which their parents took as a good sign. The next day was somewhat quiet, as Rachel kept to her room all day and Missy was over at her new friend's house. Walter kept a weary eye on the house across the street, however. He tried to surprise it, jumping out from his house or peeking through the window, but it was silent the rest of the weekend.

Sunday night he lay awake in bed, staring at the ceiling. He kept trying to remember the strange lights and what happened afterward. He reached a hand to the back of his messy orange hair and rubbed his head, feeling for a bump. Finding nothing, he sighed and continued to think.

Had he just been really tired Friday night? Or had there been someone else in his room…?

Nah.

He closed his eyes and rolled over to one side, shifting his position to a more comfortable one.

Couldn't be.

…**::Los Angeles, California- Robert Englund's Office::…**

He shouldn't have stayed this late. He knew that- not only had he promised to come home earlier than usual today, but he needed to be catching up on his sleep.

'_No pun intended_.' He thought, chuckling to himself.

Of course, he hadn't had any dreams with Freddy for a while. Not since that demon had tried to take his place, resulting in more chaos than Robert had ever signed up for. Since then, however, he hadn't heard from the Nightmare, only what Wes occasionally mentioned. Since the Nightmare Hunters had arisen to a much higher power, they'd all gone into hiding in secret places that few humans knew of.

He wasn't one of them, luckily.

Of course, being associated with them didn't help in the least, but he figured those crazy Hunters would still probably leave him alone in exchange for the people that actually knew where the Nightmares were. They all had constant protection, and he'd followed suit with his own personal hired bodyguard, which his wife understood, but only in the sake of "keeping the fans at bay."

Why was he thinking about this? He shook his head, taking his glasses off and gently cleaning them, almost absentmindedly. He put them back on when there was a knock at his door.

"Yes?" he asked, walking around his desk to the door, but he slowed down when there was no response.

In one sudden, bright movement, the door busted off its hinges, carrying his bodyguard, Franz, with it, and quickly overtaking Mr. Englund, shoving both of them backwards and into the opposite wall.

Robert flinched as pain flared up from all over his body, and he felt what was presumed to be blood running down his face and arms. Franz was out cold; four long gashes had opened his chest up and they now flowed freely with warm blood. He would probably bleed to death soon, if he already hadn't.

He looked up, at the same time trying to shove the door and Franz off of him. When he looked through the doorway, which was now on fire, along with the hallway behind it, he gasped and his eyes went wide with recognition.

"No…no! It can't be! You…you're…" he cried, trying to form the right words.

"Yesss…" the man said, his voice deep and gravely, "You know me. And now, you'll come along politely, Mr. _Englund_, or it shall not only end badly for you, but your wife and children as well."

END CHAPTER THREE

Of course, there are going to be a lot of things that don't change.

Aaah, yes. I bet you all think you know who that is. Or you're trying to figure it out.

Good luck, dearies~. ^^

Took Rachel's powers away. No longer fit the plotline. ^^

The McCarvic family belongs to me. The figures in the night, however, do NOT. Nor the two guys and horse mentioned at the beginning of this chapter, or Mr. Englund. :3

I AM AN EVIL, CRUEL FANBOY WITH TOO MUCH TIME ON HIS HANDS. D8


	5. Back to School

A Nightmare Rides My Bus!

By: The Talking Absol

Chapter Four: Back To School

When Walter stepped out into the cool morning air, the last thing he expected was to see Sadaku and her group walking along on the other side of the street. He let out a wild grin, yelled a goodbye to his parents, and ran across to greet them, Missy following eagerly, leaving Rachel in the dust at the doorstep, whence she huffed and walked on towards the bus stop.

"Hey there!" he cried, waving enthusiastically. They paused, and he saw Sadaku quickly comfort a scared little boy, a new addition to their team. Walter saw that he had scared the poor little kid, so he attempted to slow down, putting his heels on the ground and leaning backwards. Unfortunately, gravity was apparently in a rotten mood that day because he slipped backwards and fell onto his butt.

Moaning from the pain, he rubbed his backside while Natalie began to laugh like a lunatic. He attempted a smile, but winced as he got back up onto his feet.

"I'm sorry! Did I scare…uh…just who is this little guy anyway?" he asked, trying to take a peek through the girls to see the boy. The boy shyly poked his head out from behind Yuki's legs, and a concerned and warning glare overtook his eyes. But seconds later, the boy was out from his hiding place, looking up at Walter with a curious look on his face. Walter blinked harshly. He could have sworn it seemed like time had stopped in those few seconds…

"This is Tim, my little brother. He was, uh, sick yesterday and couldn't come. But here he is now!" Natalie said with a nervous grin.

"Nice to meet you, Tim!" Missy said eagerly, and shook his hand right as they reached their bus stop, "Is he gunna be in our class?"

"Nah, he's in Kindergarten." Natalie ruffled his hair affectionately, grinning in a forceful way, but Tim backed up and gave her a glare that would have killed her on the spot had she seen it.

It was evident that the bus wouldn't be arriving for another couple of minutes, so the group waited somewhat impatiently with the other kids at their stop. Walter was having a moral battle about whether or not to tell the girls about what he had seen at their house, fidgeting and mumbling under his breath. The girls ignored him.

"The bus is late…Typicial…" Sadaku mumbled, almost gloomily.

"Hey, girls, about your house-" he finally started, but the bus chugged up to the stop from around the corner, stopping his conversation.

Sadaku held back from getting on until Walter was, as usual, the last to board, but just before his foot hit the first step, her hand shot out, fast as a bullet, and grabbed his shirt, jerking him back and to the side of the bus.

"Look, _Walter_," she spat, in a voice that sounded like wind going through a cemetery, "Stay out of our personal lives. For school, the charade can stay up. You might live a little longer that way." With that said, she shoved him away and climbed onto the bus.

…**::Lunch::…**

Walter sighed and stared at the three rocks in his way. They were more like boulders, honestly, judging to their size and intelligence similarity.

David growled, "Yesterday I kept coughing up hairballs like a cat because of your stupid foreign friend. I was called a cat, like I was licking myself or something. I don't lick myself!"

Kevin nodded, and cracked his knuckles. "Yeah, last week you…wait, was it yesterday or last week, David?" he asked, turning a thoughtful look to his leader.

David snapped, "It doesn't matter! Let's pummel him!"

With that, they lunged for Walter's throat. Walter screeched and bolted in the opposite direction. Most of the kids either moved out of the way or tried to trip Walter, in their own way of lusting for blood. Walter had learned to ignore and leap over these obstacles years ago.

He rounded a corner, skidding on the wet floor, and did a complete u-turn back towards the lunch room. The boys followed, also slipping on the wet floor. Walter put on his last burst of speed, and ran like the prey he was back through the doors just as lunch was about to be called to an end. The boys followed without hesitation, and Billy finally pulled a professional football move and tackled Walter to the ground.

Walter kicked and tried to lift himself off the ground, but he was no match for the easily 160-pound frontliner. He finally curled his hand into a fist and waited.

It never came. Instead, he heard voices.

"Just what do you think you're doing, you scum?" A girl, probably not older than him.

"We're doin' our job to keep the school in line, that's what!"

Billy lifted himself up, and Walter heard the familiar crack of knuckles.

"D-don't worry!" Walter said, still covering his face. "I'm n-n-not worth helping…"

"Everyone is worth helping. That's the point of…_JUSTICE!_"

She screeched a wild, barbaric warcry, startling them, causing Walter to finally look up and see what was going on. She jumped up, latching onto David and biting down on his ear. There was a satisfying crunch of cartilage and she suddenly let go and jumped back. David attempted to reach over and grab her, but she grabbed his flailing hands and brought him forward and forced his abdomen onto her knee. She dropped him like a hot potato and moved on.

The next one, Alan, tried to come at her, bringing his fist up and trying to bring it down on her head. She ducked slightly and moved forward, and was able to slam a fist into his gut right below his badly-aimed punch. She heard him go "uff" and then brought her fist up to meet his chin, sending him flying backwards with her expertise uppercut.

Billy appeared hesitant to come at her. When she turned to glare at him, he mumbled something about "Mommy told me not to hit girls…" and scuttled off.

She blew a strand of hair out of her face and smiled at the crowd stared in awe at her ability. She then turned on her heel, and her face turned into a frown upon seeing Walter still gawking at her from the floor.

"F-Freak! What the hell?" David cried, picking himself up only to turn and run to the nurses office, Alan quickly following.

"Are you completely useless?" She asked casually.

He got back up while trying to fix his glasses on his nose.

"…Yeah. Kinda." Walter admitted snappily, feeling anger arise. "Thanks, I guess, I mean, yeah, thanks. Um…who are you?" he asked.

"Rose. Rose Connelly-Salazar."

Oh. Now Walter remembered- the girl with the detective father. Hispanic, but that was all that he knew about her. She kept to herself a lot, and when she was social she only hung out with other cops' kids.

She suddenly reached up and grabbed him, pulling him along towards the large group of kids coming out of the lunchroom, shoving her way through the crowd.

"Now, tell me where your new friends are." She demanded, not looking at him.

"Uh, why?" he asked, arcing an eyebrow.

"Because I need to talk to them!" She turned to glare at him, but when she turned back, they both spotted the group at the back, waiting for the crowd to thin a little to leave.

The entire group tensed upon seeing Rose, who let go of Walter when she got close.

She shoved him back, eyes never leaving the group, "Go. Leave."

Walter sensed danger, which his senses were acute to. "Why? Maybe I need to-"

"Walter, just go." Natalie said quietly, looking away.

Walter frowned, feeling disappointment in being left out and apprehension upon what would happen between the girls, seeing as to how Tim wasn't there. But, knowing it was probably better to listen to them, he left the lunchroom, stopping only to pick up his backpack.

As he did, however, he overheard a part of their conversation.

"…This couldn't have waited until afterwards, Rose?"

"-emergency. They've taken Englund."

'_What?_' Walter thought, but shook his head. This was just all confusing.

The rest of the day went smoothly. And when it came time to go home, he even got Tim to smile and laugh a little.

It was…a _good_ day.

…**::New Line Cinema Studios, 10:30 PM::…**

It wasn't common for Wes Craven to be here anymore. He had his own life now, but he still only really trusted them for his movies.

He wasn't making one now, which is why it was strange for him to be there.

He'd gotten a call.

_Someone_ very important wanted to talk to him about _something_ very important. Freddy had told him the call might come.

He hadn't wanted to get involved in all of this. He hadn't wanted to be a Seer, write down the Nightmare's lives to keep their belief in tact, etc.

He just wanted to retire from all of this. But, once you were in, there wasn't any going out. Not that he was _scared_, per say…

He gave a nervous chuckle at the thought. Him, the "Master Writer/Director of Fear," afraid of a few crazy people? Okay, well, that was actually rational, considering they had guns and bullets that could kill the unkillable-

He heard a small shuffle in the darkness to his left, and he turned only to come face-to-face with Sean Cunningham.

"Wh-whoa!" Sean cried out, stumbling backwards, "I meant to say hi, but you were-"

"-Lost in thought, yeah." Wes grinned sheepishly, still looking around for the (was it best to call them people?) "people" he was supposed to meet, "You…you got the call too?

"Yeah. Did you hear?"

"Yeah…This is bad."

There was a long silence before a voice in front of both of them spoke.

"So glad you could make it to our lovely gathering." The voice was female, and held the tone of one who hadn't gotten a lot of sleep in the past, oh, twenty years.

Wes and Sean whipped around to face the trio approaching them, but all they could see of them was that two were women (one might have been a guy, judging by the short hair and lean muscles, but the shape was still rather curvy), and one was a much taller man. The woman in the middle spoke again, making it evident she had been the first to speak.

"We require your…assistance."

Wes squinted, and then gasped and stepped back, recognizing her as she came closer towards the light.

"A-absolutely not! How did you know about this-"

"Easy," the man on the left stated, chuckling and crossing his massive arms, "_Our leader_ made the call."

"You mean, FC's-" Sean started.

"No. You forget about the Nightmare's 'special abilities.'" The woman on the right made a sarcastic quotation gesture with her hands.

"So he…Your leader's a Nightmare." Wes observed, choosing his words carefully.

"Yes," the woman in the middle said, sounding impatient, "Now, if you want Mr. Englund back, relatively safe and sound, you'll do us a little favor."

"What kind of favor?"

"Oh, nothing much," she chuckled darkly, "We just need some of your…_resources_."

**End Chapter Four**

Finally done! Well, tell me what you think, and if anything needs to be cleared up, just ask or point it out.

I own all the characters except Sadaku, Tim, Natalie, Yuki, Sean S. Cunningham, Wes Craven, or the three figures they talk to. o.O


End file.
